Fortune and fantasy on Africa's oil frontier
Ghanaian business in Hong Kong. Photo by Christiane Badgley
Siddiq Fuseini grew up in Takoradi, went to school in Accra and for the past six years has been living in Hong Kong. “Takoradi will always be home,” he said, “and I’ll return. But not now.”
Siddiq Fuseini, Hong Kong. Photo by Christiane Badgley
In Hong Kong Fuseini runs a retail-wholesale and export clothing business and one of the officers of the African Community in Hong Kong Association (ACHK). He and his Ghanaian business partner sell hip-hop attire to clients from around the world. It’s a long way from Takoradi – geographically and culturally – but this is where one can find opportunities that don’t exist back home.
For now Siddiq and his partner follow Ghana politics and oil news from afar. Siddiq told me he’s watching the development of Ghana’s oil industry, curious to see if oil will finally bring jobs and prosperity to the Western region. Like many people I spoke with in Takoradi, Siddiq fears that oil will end up being like timber or gold, creating wealth for a few but doing little to improve life in the Western Region.
Christiane Badgley has been producing and editing documentary films for the past twenty years, with much of her work focused on the U.S. criminal justice system and post-colonial African politics and history.
